No Question About That - a Manchester United podcast

#1038 | Ipswich made a real go of it for a half, evading United's high press by exploiting isolated full-backs.

Once Lisandro Martinez started dictating United's patterns of possession into midfield, the game opened up completely and United ran away with it.

Ed and Dharnish dig into why United's press still isn't functioning, how much of the transformation in build-up play comes down to Martinez specifically and how well Mainoo and Tielemans dovetailed.

They also look at Cunha and Bruno rotating as false nines, question whether it costs United a real box presence and close with a positive verdict on Ipswich as a team for the rest of the season.

0:00 Intro: United 5-2 Ipswich
3:46 Today's talking points
4:29 How Ipswich evaded United's press
9:59 Martinez transforms the buildup
13:42 Mainoo and Tielemans in midfield
19:30 Cunha and Bruno: two false nines
24:43 Verdict on Ipswich and the wrap-up

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#1037 | United trailed to Ipswich for a moment, but a hat-trick from Bruno Fernandes, Harry Maguire’s deflected effort and a Bryan Mbeumo goal turned it into a 5-2 win. It was a complete response to the opening-day defeat at Hull.

Ed and Dan dig into the bigger picture: how well the Tielemans-Mainoo midfield pairing worked, the ongoing debate over Marcus Rashford's role, and the club’s search for a new left-back.

The pod closes on the transfer window with two days left: there’s scepticism about Villa's reported £40 million interest in Amad and a general sense that United’s could have been more ambitious than a net spend that trails Coventry and Ipswich.

0:00 Introduction

1:06 Reacting to United's 5-2 win

5:39 Midfield: Tielemans and Mainoo

14:40 Marcus Rashford's return

17:46 Front three, fullbacks and squad balance

22:58 Defence concerns: Maguire, Martinez, Shaw

25:04 Bruno's hat-trick and Maguire's 'goal'

27:20 Pressure, tactics and pressing

29:28 Transfer market: Amad bid and left-back hunt

39:44 Baleba, Sesko and squad depth

43:22 Net spend and club ambition

44:37 Sign-off

If you are interested in supporting the show and accessing a weekly exclusive bonus episode, check out our Patreon page or subscribe on Apple Podcasts. Supporter funded episodes are ad-free. NQAT is available on all podcast apps and in video on YouTube. Hit that subscribe button, leave a rating and write a review on Apple or Spotify.
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#1036 | Ed and Dominic analyse United’s Champions League return. It’s a tough-looking draw with Bayern, Roma, and RB Leipzig at home. Then some cracking away ties in top European travel destinations.

From there it's on to the run-in to transfer deadline day, where the expectation is that a left-back arrives. Probably not the marquee name everyone's been hoping for. There’s also a wider question about why United never seem to be able to sell anyone for a decent fee.

There's a proper rant about the ex-United pundit circuit and how relentlessly negative it's become. It’s to the detriment of the club not its benefit.

The pod finishes with a preview of Ipswich at home and why this one matters more than it should after Hull.

0:00 Intro
0:52 Champions League draw circus
2:19 United's opponents: Bayern and Atlético
5:40 Sporting, Villarreal and the rest of the draw
13:00 League phase maths
15:25 Tactics: possession vs counter-attacking
18:29 Left-back search
27:03 Why United can't sell players
35:05 Ex-United pundit machine
40:45 Ipswich preview and team selection
50:01 Outro

If you are interested in supporting the show and accessing a weekly exclusive bonus episode, check out our Patreon page or subscribe on Apple Podcasts. Supporter funded episodes are ad-free. NQAT is available on all podcast apps and in video on YouTube. Hit that subscribe button, leave a rating and write a review on Apple or Spotify.
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#1035 | Ed and Dharnish break down United's 2-0 defeat at Hull on the tactics show. Some of this was physical. Four starters had played one 90 or fewer all pre-season, and the lack of sharpness showed. But a lot of it was tactical too.

Why was Bruno under-par and has the reaction been over the top?

How do Tielemans and Bruno better dovetail in future?

What were United doing with their possession game?

How did Hull force United wide and into playing aimless crosses?

Why are United having problems with physicality and aerial duels?

There’s a cautiously optimistic look ahead to Ipswich: trust the system, cut down the aimless crossing and give the new midfield time to settle.

0:00 Intro and agenda
1:28 First reactions: bullied by Hull
3:43 Bruno Fernandes' performance
9:28 Hull forcing United wide
17:28 Solutions: overloads and switches
20:53 Aerial duels and United's size problem
23:06 How much should we panic?
25:59 Outro

Ready to have an AI that can tackle real work? Try Claude Cowork today — Claude.ai/NQAT

If you are interested in supporting the show and accessing a weekly exclusive bonus episode, check out our Patreon page or subscribe on Apple Podcasts. Supporter funded episodes are ad-free. NQAT is available on all podcast apps and in video on YouTube. Hit that subscribe button, leave a rating and write a review on Apple or Spotify.
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#1034 | Ed and Jamie look at Jeff Bezos buying into Liverpool, a deal that values the club at around £5.5 billion for a consortium stake of just under 40%. Why is Bezos getting involved now? Can an Amazon-owned media empire buy into a Premier League club without creating a conflict of interest for future TV rights deals? And how does it compare to United's own ownership structure?

On United specifically, spend so far this summer sits at £135 million gross. What does that mean for United's SCR position? And why loaning Marcus Rashford out doesn't actually help United's finances despite the noise around it.

The second half of the pod covers the wider transfer market: Tottenham's spending after two bottom-third finishes, Chelsea's need to sell under their settlement agreement, and a longer discussion of whether the squad cost ratio is fair on clubs like Newcastle and Villa. The answer, broadly, is that it isn't as unfair as often claimed.

0:00 Intro2:13 Bezos Liverpool consortium10:16 Amazon, media rights and conflicts of interest16:16 United's transfer spend and SCR position22:31 Rashford's future27:35 Big-six spending across the league39:54 Is SCR anti-competitive?45:51 Salary caps, owner-funding, potential exits49:34 EFL losses and the Premier League deal55:21 Ticket prices and the pyramid56:22 Wrap-up

Ready to have an AI that can tackle real work? Try Claude Cowork today — Claude.ai/NQAT

If you are interested in supporting the show and accessing a weekly exclusive bonus episode, check out our Patreon page or subscribe on Apple Podcasts. Supporter funded episodes are ad-free. NQAT is available on all podcast apps and in video on YouTube. Hit that subscribe button, leave a rating and write a review on Apple or Spotify.
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